Getting a New Bankbook 24 November, 2006

In Canada, we don’t use bankbooks very much anymore. Most of our banking is done online, so we can see our transactions whenever we want. Also, if we get any notification of our transactions, it is usually in the form of a monthly statement, not a bankbook.

However, the bankbook system is alive and well in Japan. Because I have a special “integrated account”, I tend to go through bankbooks fairly quickly — which is rather annoying. Anyway, someone asked me recently about the procedure for getting a new bankbook, so I thought I would give you an example of how it is done at Joyo Bank.

Keep in mind that you cannot get a new bankbook until your old one is COMPLETELY full. Don’t bother trying to convince the teller or the ATM to give you a new book before the old one has run out of space.

There are two ways to get a new bankbook: either ask a teller to do it, or do it yourself at a special ATM. If you show the last (completely full) page to a teller, he or she will be able to figure out what you want without you having to say anything. If you prefer to do it yourself, see the handy photo guide below.

Here is the machine you need to use. It is a bit different from a regular ATM.

You are given two options. The first one is 「通帳 記入」and the second one is 「通帳 繰越 発行」. (You thought I was going to give you the readings, but I am not! Please take a minute and look up the readings and the meanings on Goo Jisho. Aren’t I nice to give them to you in word-sized chunks?? I think that by looking them up rather than just being given the meanings, it will help you to remember them. If you don’t use your kanji, you will lose your kanji!!)

Choose the second option (but you already know that now because you looked it up, you clever thing) and insert your bankbook.

You will then be given two more options: 「繰越 する」 or 「繰越 しない」. This part is just making sure that you really, really want to get a new bankbook. They ask you this because the process for making a new book takes a bit of time, especially if you have an integrated account like mine (because there are many different pages that need to be created throughout the book) or if you haven’t updated your bankbook in a long time.

If you decide that you don’t really have enough time to complete the process, choose the one that ends in しない. If you really, really do want a new bankbook, and you are willing to invest the time and energy into this important task, choose the one that ends in する.

Et voila, in five or ten minutes, you will be the proud owner of a new, sparkly bankbook. Fun, eh?